


got your heart in a headlock

by corsicana



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-13 02:22:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28770780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/corsicana/pseuds/corsicana
Summary: “So how’s it going with that cute coworker of yours?” Sylvain quips as he sits himself down on Felix’s couch, having let himself in completely uninvited. Felix huffs a sigh and sits on the chair opposite the couch, crossing his arms. “You know, the redhead. Every time I come in to bug you, the two of you, are, like—” He makes an unintelligible hand gesture. “There’s gotta be something there, right? Right?”Felix stares at the sword display mounted above the couch. Maybe it’ll fall. Hopefully it’ll fall. Directly onto this idiot’s skull. “What are you even talking about?”Or: Felix doesn't have a crush on Annette. Really. He doesn't. Besides, there's no way she'd like him back. Right?
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic/Felix Hugo Fraldarius
Comments: 3
Kudos: 49





	got your heart in a headlock

**Author's Note:**

> and they were BOTH BARISTAS
> 
> HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY LOGAN!!! i really hope you enjoy!! i had so much fun writing this and i love u very much!!

Look, Felix knows he isn’t the best at his job. He’s long since accepted that, as have most of his coworkers, as have his higher-ups. It’s a wonder he got this job in the first place, because, really—

“Excuse me? I ordered this latte, and it just tastes like hot milk.”

Felix has to suppress an eye-roll. “Yes, that would be what it tastes like when you add no flavor shots to it.”

The customer frowns down at her drink. “I think you made it wrong.”

“I think you ordered it wrong,” Felix retorts. 

“Felix!” Annette gasps from the drink-making station. She abandons the drink she was making and rushes over to the register, expression pained. “I’m so sorry about him. He's—he’s just a little rough around the edges, you know? He doesn’t mean it.” 

“I sure do,” Felix mutters under his breath. The customer gives her a blank stare. 

“Tell you what,” Annette tries plaintively. “I’ll remake it with some extra flavor in a jiffy, no charge, okay?”

“Okay, thanks,” the customer says, sounding completely ungrateful. “If you need the name, it’s Cornelia.”

Annette shoots him a glare as she scurries back to the drink-making station and starts remaking Cornelia's drink. Whatever. Felix has a backbone and will use it, thank you. 

Felix has had all the training about projecting an air of care and friendliness, about prioritizing the customer. More than once, even. And, yeah, maybe Felix’s attitude makes for some unpleasant interactions in the moment, but it sure knocks customers down a peg. It saves him the trouble of a customer returning with an even bigger ego.

Annette, though—Annette is the opposite. She’s held her smile through the worst customers, even the outright aggressive ones that yell at her for taking too long when the store is packed. Hell, she’s held her patience through the guy who tried to swipe his twenty-dollar bill through the card reader. She’s the kind of model employee Felix will never be, and he can’t help but hold a begrudging respect for that. Despite his reluctance, though, her attitude is annoying on some levels, especially when—

“Really, Felix,” Annette sighs as they clean down the store after closing. “You could stand to be a little nicer to the customers.”

It’s a conversation they’ve had countless times before. “They could stand to be nicer to us.”

“Maybe, but an eye for an eye leaves the world blind. Besides, maybe they were just having an awful day, and that little bit of kindness you show them could turn their day around!” Annette catches Felix’s dubious glance and shrugs. “I know it’s wishful thinking. But there’s nothing wrong with that, you know?”

 _Nothing wrong, my ass_ , Felix wants to protest. Instead, he bites his lip and shoves the mop harder at the floor. Annette lets the conversation drop, but Felix doesn’t miss the sad little glint to her eyes, even as she tries to avoid his gaze.

/ * \

“So how’s it going with that cute coworker of yours?” Sylvain quips as he sits himself down on Felix’s couch, having let himself in completely uninvited. Felix huffs a sigh and sits on the chair opposite the couch, crossing his arms. “You know, the redhead. Every time I come in to bug you, the two of you, are, like—” He makes an unintelligible hand gesture. “There’s gotta be something there, right? Right?”

Felix stares at the sword display mounted above the couch. Maybe it’ll fall. Hopefully it’ll fall. Directly onto this idiot’s skull. “What are you even talking about?”

“Okay, so, correct me if I’m wrong,” Sylvain starts with the smugness of someone who will not stand being corrected. “But she calls you out for being a total jerk, covers your ass, and you barely get ruffled over it. You just let it happen. Like—you don’t even let me and Ingrid joke about how much of a jerk you can be sometimes. But you’re letting her just destroy you like that? C’mon.”

“It’s a work setting,” Felix mutters. “I can’t—

“Really?” Sylvain groans. “That has literally never stopped you before.”

Felix scowls. The sword display obviously isn’t coming through for him. Useless thing. “She’s just—she’s just doing what she thinks is best. I’m not interested in making work any more miserable than it already is, for either of us.”

“Oh?” Sylvain grins wide and with teeth. “Coming from you, that’s just about a confession, don’t you think?” Before Felix can interject, Sylvain is continuing in a rush: “I mean, I dare say that was a _compliment_. Don’t move too quickly, now, Felix. I’m not ready to be a godparent.”

“You’re impossible,” Felix hisses. “Digging for things that aren’t there. Don’t you have better things to do with your time?”

“And you’re defensive,” Sylvain retorts all too easily. Then, ignoring Felix’s question: “It’s really not a bad thing, you know. She seems sweet. And, you know, that she’s trying so hard with you is a positive sign. Wouldn’t be surprised if she was nursing a crush too, yeah?”

“It’s not a _crush_ —”

“Whatever you say.”

/ * \

Sylvain is an idiot. Sylvain is an idiot, and it must be contagious, somehow, because Felix can’t stop thinking about their conversation. Because it’s true that for all the qualms Annette has with how Felix does his job, she doesn’t scorn him for it. She chides him about it, absolutely, but it lacks any true anger. She’s always there to laugh about the silly things, too, like the time a customer ordered a _vanilla latte without vanilla, please_.

Ugh. Stupid thoughts. Felix gets more and more snippy the longer his shift goes on, the longer he has to fend off these thoughts, the longer he has to consider that maybe Annette means something to him. Felix hardly thinks it’s out of the ordinary for him, but once the shop closes, Annette pulls him aside—in lieu of doing the post-close cleaning!—and asks, “Hey, are you okay?”

“What?” Felix blinks. “Obviously. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I don’t know,” Annette says, voice wavering a little. “You just seem—I mean, you’re never particularly patient with the customers, but it seemed… especially pointed today.”

 _No thanks to you or Sylvain_. “It’s nothing. Just—some things on my mind.” 

“Well, I’m here if you want to talk.” Annette’s smile is gentle as she adds, “Friends are friends for a reason, you know?”

It takes Felix a second. Any of his other coworkers would have been offended by the shortness of his reply and left in a huff. Not that this conversation would have happened in the first place—they’ve long since distanced themselves from him, deterred by his jagged edges. But Annette—Annette molds herself to fit those edges like it’s nothing, not catching on even the most obtuse corner. 

And so, choking out a _thanks_ is the least Felix can do. Annette just beams at him, chiming, “Don’t mention it!” like this is the least she could do.

 _Fuck_ , Felix thinks.

/ * \

It doesn’t have to mean anything.

/ * \

“So,” Sylvain drawls as he gets to the front of the line, winking at Felix. Why is Felix always manning the register? Why does he have to deal with this? “I’ll have a blonde roast with—”

“You know we’re too small to have the blonde roast.”

Sylvain gasps in faux offense. “But I took the time out of my day to patronize this fine establishment, and you’re telling me you don’t have the very specific item I want? I want to speak to the—”

“No, you don’t,” Felix interrupts him, putting Sylvain’s regular order into the system. It’s hardly even coffee with all the sugar and flavor shots he adds into it. Disgusting. Felix gestures to the card reader, and Sylvain rolls his eyes as he pays. 

“So,” Sylvain starts again as he leans on the counter, a lilting note to his voice that Felix _hates_. “How’s that crush of yours going?”

“Felix has a _crush_?” Annette calls from the sink. “Oooh, don’t leave me out of this one!”

“I’m going to have to ask you to exit the line and let others order,” Felix says, pained.

“There’s literally nobody else in the store, Felix,” Sylvain replies all too patiently.

Felix scowls. Where’s the sword display when he needs it? “I don’t have a crush.”

“Don’t be shy,” Sylvain simpers. “We’re all friends here, yeah?”

“Yeah!” Annette chimes eagerly. “C’mon, I didn’t even know you had a crush. You can’t keep all these things to yourself!”

“You are _dead_ , Gautier,” Felix hisses, hopefully low enough that Annette can’t hear. “Mark my words.”

“Oh, no, another death threat from Felix,” Sylvain replies, monotone. “Whatever will I do?”

Annette finishes Sylvain’s drink, hurrying over to the counter and handing it to him. “Don’t hold out on us, Felix,” she whines. “Today’s been so boring as it is. Tell us about them!”

“Fine,” Felix grits out. Eventually, he manages, “She’s—she’s… nice.” Sylvain bursts out laughing, and Felix shoots him a glare that does not, by any means, shut him up. “Patient,” he continues, ignoring Sylvain. “Passionate.” He looks away, trying to hide his blush. “Is that—is that enough?”

“Oh, you didn’t have to talk about it if you really didn’t want to, Felix,” Annette murmurs. “But she sounds wonderful. Have you thought about telling her how you feel?”

“Yeah, have you?” Sylvain eggs him on.

“No,” Felix groans. “It’s—there’s—it’s not going to happen. End of story.”

Sylvain’s eyes flash with _something_ , but before he can say anything, Annette is interjecting with, “Aw, that’s no way to think of it. You’ll never know if you don’t try, you know?”

Felix grunts. Annette’s smile is somber, though he can’t fathom why. Was his answer really that disappointing?

/ * \

Sylvain is waiting for Felix when he gets home. Why did he give Sylvain a spare key for “emergencies,” again? Of course Sylvain would abuse it. “You aren’t really giving up on Annette, are you?” Sylvain asks immediately through a mouthful of chips. Felix’s chips. That he did not give Sylvain permission to eat.

“It’s not going to go anywhere, so yes,” Felix answers curtly.

“ _Felix_ ,” Sylvain whines. “You’re kidding me. You meet this beautiful girl, you have chemistry, she actually likes you—” Felix shoots him a glare, at which Sylvain stutters a little. “Well, you get what I mean. What’s holding you back?”

Felix hesitates. What _is_ holding him back? Certainly, Annette is kind enough to take it in stride even if she doesn’t reciprocate. Is he afraid, then, that she might? 

Sylvain evidently takes Felix’s silence as an answer. Shrugging, he continues, “I mean, it’s your call. But you’d be on my ass if I found someone as good as her and wasn’t doing anything about it, you know?”

“That’s different,” Felix mutters. “You’re—”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m an insatiable fiend that needs to learn how to settle down,” Sylvain fills in with a dismissive wave of his hand. “But _you_ need to learn to give stuff like this a chance, you know?”

Felix bites his lip. “But what if—”

“What if it all goes wonderfully and you live happily ever after? Exactly, Felix. Exactly.” Sylvain grins cheekily at him, and Felix—Felix has nothing to say to that.

/ * \

It’s easier said than done, of course. It would have been easier, too, had Annette not started acting all skittish and jittery around Felix every time they work together. Annette always has that frantic energy about her, but it’s usually at least somewhat controlled. Now, though—

“Oh, gosh, I’m so sorry,” Annette says in a rush as yet another drink is returned to her to be remade. “I’ll get it right this time, I swear!” 

Even so—“They asked for almond milk,” Felix reminds her as he catches Annette pulling out the regular milk.

“Sorry!” Annette yelps, blush rising to her face. As she grabs the almond milk instead, Felix vaguely hears her mutter, “Oh, gosh, Annie, you almost put your foot in it there…”

Felix frowns to himself. Maybe Sylvain was wrong. Skirt-chaser he is, he’s usually right about this sort of thing, but what else could Annette’s nervousness mean? He’s swallowed his pride and asked his other coworkers if Annette’s been like this on days he isn’t in; their answer was a blank stare and a flat no. So it has to be something with him, and this isn’t the behavior of someone who _likes_ him. It’s certainly not the way Sylvain and any of his girlfriends have ever acted around one another, or the way Ingrid acts with Mercedes, or—

Well. It’s okay. Felix should have known better than to get his hopes up, after all. But whatever it is, it’s clearly bothering Annette, and Annette—Annette would be the bigger person and apologize. 

So.

“Annette?” He mumbles, tentative, after the last customer has left for the day.

Annette’s head snaps up like a whip from where she was cleaning. “Yes? What is it?” she asks far too casually.

Felix bites the inside of his cheek. “Well, I—just wanted to… apologize,” he starts, like pulling teeth. “For—whatever it is I did to make you so…” This was a stupid idea, actually—he doesn’t even know what he’s apologizing for. What kind of shitty apology is that? He’s come too far to back out now though, so he waves his hand in a vague gesture. “I didn’t… mean to.”

“Huh? Me? Nervous? What are you talking about?”

Felix blinks at her owlishly. The silence stretches out a while longer, until she yelps and almost falls with the mop she was leaning on.

“Okay, you got me,” Annette scowls, straightening herself back up. “But, um, it’s really not you. You haven’t done anything wrong, I promise. I just—have a lot on my mind.”

Felix hardly believes that, but he’s also unsure how to push it without being harsh. While scrambling to find the right words, he realizes that this situation reminds him of something from before—except that their roles were reversed now. “Well, if you wanted to… talk about it,” he offers at length, the words feeling foreign on his mouth, “you could. Because. We’re... friends, right?”

“Aw, Felix!” Annette smiles at him, and, no, Felix’s heart does not skip a beat. Especially not since it’s been days since Annette has last smiled at him like that. “That’s so sweet of you! Um, it’s just—” She laughs a little uneasily. “You mentioning your crush got me thinking about mine, that’s all. The more I thought about it, the more nervous I got. I’d kind of put it out of my mind, you know, but—”

“You have a crush?” Felix blurts before he can think better of it.

“Um, yeah?” Annette frowns. “Is that—is that so bad?”

“No,” Felix says. It is absolutely fine. It definitely does not send a twinge of jealousy through him. Not at all. Because he is just that okay with it, he asks, “What—what are they like?”

“Felix!” Annette blushes beet red. “You can’t—you can’t just ask a girl that! Gosh!” 

_But it’s okay to ask me?_ “I want to know, though.”

“Ugh, _fine_ ,” Annette mutters. “He’s—he’s reserved. Blunt. Kind of a jerk, sometimes—okay, maybe not just kind of. But he’s really sweet when you get down to it.”

“He sounds like an asshole,” Felix tells her. “Don’t you deserve someone who’s nice all the time?”

Annette stares at him for a moment. “He’s really not that bad,” she says eventually. “You’d like him if you knew him.”

Doubtful.

/ * \

“Dude,” Sylvain wheezes, barely holding back laughter. “She described her crush like that, and you didn’t—you don’t—”

“What?” Felix scowls. “Sorry that this isn’t as amusing to me as it is to you—”

“She’s fucking talking about you,” Sylvain manages. “Sothis’ tits, how oblivious do you have to be?”

“What?” Felix asks again, blinking. “No, she isn’t.”

“Okay,” Sylvain replies with unbearable patience. “You’re telling me you’re none of those things?”

“I mean—no, but—”

“How many guys do you think she knows that just so happen to be a perfect replica of your personality? Serious question here.”

“It’s possible,” Felix mutters. Sylvain stares at him. “Fine. It’s highly unlikely.” 

“There you go,” Sylvain chimes. “Proud of you. You know the next steps, right?”

“Don’t patronize me,” Felix grits out.

“Just making sure,” Sylvain quips. “You understand.”

Felix shoves him off the couch.

/ * \

Maybe coffee shops have a reputation for being romantic, but they certainly aren’t for those working there. By the end of every shift, Felix is covered in coffee stains, bleach, and sweat, just to name a few. It’s hardly attractive.

This is to say that, despite Felix knowing the next steps in theory, he does not know them in practice. How is he supposed to ask Annette out when they’re both gross and tired, just wanting to go home? That’s a guaranteed rejection, isn’t it? But he can hardly ask at the start of his shift, and he doesn’t have Annette’s number, and—

Felix huffs to himself as he cleans down the drink station. Sylvain will have his head if he doesn’t text with “the deets” in the next few days, but what is Felix supposed to do? Bring a change of clothes and a shower to their dingy little coffee shop? As if. 

The thing is, though, that Annette is still pretty, even when she’s gross and tired. Case in point: her airy laugh, like a windchime, when she accidentally knocks the spray cleaner onto the floor, or the cute little frizz to her hair that she constantly tries and fails to fix, or her grin as she bets Felix that she can clean her side of the station faster than he can.

She always does win that bet, somehow, as clumsy as she is. Annette laughs again as she finishes before Felix, sticking her nose up in the air arrogantly as she crosses her arms and gloats, “That’s another win for me!”

“I don’t know how you do it,” Felix mutters as he continues wiping everything down. It’ll only take him a little bit more time. 

“Oh, you wish you knew,” Annette simpers. “Not telling! Trade secrets and all.” And she grins, wide and with teeth, and Felix _wants_. He swallows, averting his gaze. “Wait, are you actually mad?” Annette asks, worry etched through her tone. “I don’t mean to be—”

“No,” Felix says quickly. “It’s just—” Just what? _I want to kiss you even though you probably taste like stale coffee_? _I want to hold your hand even though it probably has chemicals all over it_? “I still like my crush,” Felix says tentatively.

“That’s great, Felix,” Annette replies, maybe a little strained. “Have you made any progress with her?”

Now or never. “It’s you,” Felix blurts.

“Huh?” Felix risks a glance over to Annette, who’s blushing harder than he’s ever seen. She blinks once, twice, then laughs nervously. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No,” Felix hisses, then—well, it’s all out there, isn’t it? “I want to… take you out to an actually good coffee shop, and I want to hold your hand, even though it probably has chemicals all over it, and I want to kiss you, even though you probably taste like stale coffee. If—if you’ll let me.”

Annette freezes in the middle of tucking her hair behind her ear. The look on her face is pure shock, and it churns in Felix’s stomach. What an idiot he is. Of course Annette wouldn’t ever let him. Of course Annette would never—“Felix,” she murmurs. Then, louder, through the widest grin: “You’re such an idiot, you know that? I was making it so obvious, and you just—of _course_ you can.” She giggles, half-breathless. “Goddess, and here I thought—”

“Oh, don’t you start,” Felix mutters, but it’s got no heat with how his voice shakes. _Of_ course _you can_. Like she’d been waiting for ages, like Felix is someone to hold onto—“Sylvain gave me hell for it, too.”

“Well, good on him!” Annette rolls her eyes. “I bet he’s who gave you the guts to say anything, isn’t he?”

Felix scowls. “Can we please talk about anything _but_ Sylvain right now?”

Annette laughs again, light and airy and beautiful. “Fine,” she drawls. She hums in thought, then suggests, “Let’s talk about where you wanna take me for our first date, okay?”

And they do. It takes them forever to finish cleaning up the store, half because Felix can’t tear his eyes away from how _bright_ Annette is, now, the cheeriness to her voice and the tenderness to her teasing. Was she always like this? Had he just never noticed? Or maybe—maybe this all is making her just _that_ happy.

The thought makes Felix’s heart tremble as he locks up the store. Annette walks out beside him, chiming, “I’ll see you tomorrow, then! Don’t forget to text me!” But she lingers, throwing a pointed look at Felix, and Felix stares back at her. 

“Oh, come on, Felix,” Annette mutters half-heartedly. 

“What?”

Annette just rolls her eyes, bridges the gap between them, and kisses Felix on the cheek. The sensation smolders even after she pulls away, even though it was only for a second. Felix brings his hand up to his cheek, as though he might be able to hold the feeling there. And—despite himself, his lips twitch up into a smile. “Oh,” he says, dumbly.

“You’d better not keep me waiting like that tomorrow,” Annette quips.

(He doesn’t.)

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading!! i hope you enjoyed, as well :') please feel free to leave a comment or kudos! theyre what keep me going! also feel free to connect with me on [twitter!](https://twitter.com/candidum)
> 
> and, as always, big thanks to my betas, [hyun](https://archiveofourown.org/users/class_3a) and [marc](https://archiveofourown.org/users/arknoas) for making this fic the best it could be! :')


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